What Lies Beneath
by catastrophe86
Summary: Working title - Bella shifts into her second form, a wolf, shortly after moving to Forks where the mysterious Cullen's reside. What happens when she meets the beautiful and unavailable Rosalie Hale? Rosalie/Bella pairing. One-shot for now.
1. Chapter 1

**What Lies Beneath (working title) - Twilight**

author: catastrophe  
>disclaimer: I own nothing.<br>pairing: Rosalie/Bella  
>summary: Bella shifts into her second form (a wolf) shortly after moving to Forks, Washington, where the mysterious Cullen's reside. What happens when she meets the beautiful and unavailable Rosalie Hale? Yes, I know this story has been done many times before, but this is my take on it. Hope you like it!<p>

* * *

><p>The earth broke away beneath her claws as she tore through the forest towards the reservation - an emergency meeting had been called… which could never be good. They lived in troubling times.<p>

The year had started out so promising, or maybe she was just lying to herself. Five months she'd spent in a new town, getting acclimated to her new surroundings - her new school, her new friends… she guessed she could call them that. The town was appropriately named Forks… bland like its atmosphere… and inhabitants. The best she could hope for at the start of the year was a swift and painless end. She had already started to count down the days to graduation so that she could escape the sham of a relationship she had with her distant father and her flighty mother. College… that would be her saving grace. If she could only make it till then.

She wasn't expecting the fever that left her immobile for almost a week, trembling with cold sweats and so nauseas she couldn't hold anything down. With the shift from warm and sunny to cold and wet, her and her father both just assumed she had come down with something… she was known for her clumsiness – a curse she had to live with for the entirety of her young life – it only made sense she would come down with some horrible cold just shortly after moving there. When they couldn't treat it at home, her father eventually called over the new doctor, Dr. Carlisle Cullen. He seemed too young to even be out of college, but his icy cold touch had soothed her momentarily, so she let him run his tests. He seemed worried about his results but refused to discuss them with her or her father. He said he would have a specialist come over the following day.

His "specialist" as he put it turned out to be Charlie's old friend, Billy Black, accompanied by his son, Jacob. To say they were confused would be an understatement. Billy gave his old friend a sad smile before gently asking him to carry his daughter out to the truck. He didn't explain why, just said that the doctor had given him a call and explained the symptoms to him. They couldn't be sure, but they had to carry the girl to have her examined by the elders of the Quileute tribe.

Charlie was hesitant but agreed as long as he could come along. Bella didn't remember much about that day – she was pretty far gone by that point. But it would end up being the most important day of her life.

The day she found out she was a shapeshifter.

Like the majority of the Quileute tribe, Bella had the ability to shift from her human form to that of a large wolf. The elders were startled, as were the rest of their people, the day they brought the sickly girl onto their land. To this day there is still no explanation as to why Bella shifted. After searching the Swan family tree, they concluded there was no link between her and the Quileute people.

She was just… special.

She was a bit taller, and leaner than the other wolves which caused her to be a bit faster, but aside from that, she was one of them. The change was actually better for her than she could have imagined. With the second form, she was given an unearthly grace that comes with being part animal. She no longer tripped over invisible stones but glided across the floor like she was made to walk there. It also helped her physical appearance… Not that she was ever ugly, but before she was never really anything special to look at. Once she shifted, she had a bit of a growth spurt. After being 5'4 for the past several years it was quite a change when she grew to nearly six feet tall. Her hair that once hung lifeless on either side of her head was now full of body that flowed down to her mid back. The colors changed as well, to not just an ordinary brown, but a reddish brown that simmered in the sunlight. She loved her new form. It took some getting used to though. She was already the center of attention at the beginning of the school year, but once she returned she was fending off guys left and right. The downside was the majority of the female population suddenly grew to hate her for all the attention she was getting. It wasn't as if she had asked for it, though.

The Quileutes explained that the shifting began when the Cullen's moved back to Forks after their long absence. Bella was only the first of many that went through the change. It didn't come as a shock to her that vampires existed, strangely enough. After learning that she was, for a lack of a better term, a _werewolf_, finding out that other mythological creatures were real wasn't too much of a stretch.

She remembered Dr. Cullen, though. While most of that week had been a blur, she remembered the kindly doctor that came and visited her. Apparently he moved to Forks with his wife just shortly before she did. Though she couldn't remember much about his visit, it was hard to believe some of the things the pack said about him. She knew their feelings were coming from blind hatred – that they didn't actually have any evidence to base their accusations from – but she couldn't help the small seed of mistrust it planted within her. It never hurt to be cautious.

And that was how she had lived the past several months – training under Sam's and Jacob's guidance to better understand her new form and falling into their similar distaste for vampires. Everything outside of the reservation was considered dangerous… so much so that Bella had even started to drift away from her school friends. She could never tell them what lies beneath, so why get close? She decided it was better to just keep to herself. So that's what she did. The only people she hung out with anymore were the boys at the reservation… where she was headed now.

Breaking through the tree line, she hurriedly dashed behind one of the nearby cabins to change before emerging back into the clearing. She spotted Jacob and Sam immediately, but the rest of the pack eluded her.

"Hey, thought I'd be the last one here," she called out with a smirk.

Jacob returned the smirk with one of his own. "You are."

_Huh? _"Whoa, what?"

Jacob chuckled but quieted down after receiving a look from Sam who at that moment chose to step forward. "It's just an emergency meeting we needed to have with you, Bella."

"Oh." She shifted slightly from foot to foot. "Am I in trouble?"

He gave her a small reassuring smile, "Not quite." He looked over at Jacob signaling for him to continue.

Bella looked over at him to see the worry etched in his features. "Bella," he started softly, "We need to take you over to meet the Cullen's."

Her eyes widened slightly, "What? Why?"

Jacob looked grim. Sam picked it up from there, "There were just two of them before. We've told you about Carlisle and his wife, Esme?" At her nod, he continued, "Well, we knew their clan was larger, but it seems their children are just now getting here."

She scrunched her eyebrows together in confusion, "Children?"

"Yes," he started again, "There are the two elders you know of and then there are five children." He waited for a moment to let the information sink in. "As a part of their charade, they pretend to be a family… meaning…" Here he paused as he looked over at Jacob. She could feel the tension radiating between them. _What is going on?_

Jacob's lips pressed together solemnly as he clenched his jaw. He looked up to meet Bella's questioning gaze before he answered her silent question, "Which means they'll be attending school… with you."

Feeling her heart stop momentarily, her mind raced at the possibilities. _The vampire kids… would be going to Forks High School?_

"WHAT?"

Sam grimaced. "It's not the best situation to be in, but we've spoken to the council and there's nothing we can do about it. The high school is a public part of the town… we have no control over what they do there." Here he sighed, "You'll have to attend school with them. It seems that the Cullen kids aren't too excited about it either. But they'd like for us to bring you over there… get the introductions out of the way so there are no misunderstandings when school starts back."

_…I'm going to die._

Swallowing gently, she gave a nod of affirmation… she would do as they asked. Didn't mean she had to like it though.

Quickly shedding their clothes they shifted and ran out into the forest, over the hills and through a couple rivers until the air began to change. Inhaling briefly, Bella immediately halted to a stop and tried to cover her snout with one of her overgrown paws.

_It's their scent… this is how vampires smell to us._ Sam's mind rang out to her. _We have to keep moving – they're already alerted to our presence._

Nodding, she shook her head and tried not to breathe in too deeply as they continued to run. She had to hold back to keep from passing the boys on many occasions, though from here she could probably smell out the vampire house on her own. But she held back and stayed behind her Alpha and Beta. Better to let them do the talking. Once they reached a small clearing they slowed down and trotted along until the house appeared before them. Bella was momentarily distracted by the design – the open glass covering over sixty percent of the house, leaving the light to stream into every room. It was beautiful. Once the back door slid open she was back on her guard though; leaning down into a defensive position and focusing on any movement around them.

She recognized Carlisle first. It had been many months, but she knew him all the same. He stared right past the front two males and met her gaze. "Hello Isabella," he smiled gently, "It's nice to see you again."

Her ears pricked up as some grumbling came from behind him. Her eyes shifted over his shoulder and gazed over the rest of their so called family, assuming that the grumble came from one of the teenagers standing behind the front two figures. The woman standing just at his shoulder must've been his wife. She had shoulder length auburn hair with open eyes and a kind smile that matched his own. She could practically feel the love and compassion pouring out of the two parental figures. She briefly wondered if the Quileute's idea about them was accurate before she met the faces of the five hostile teenagers standing behind them.

The first, a guy whose hair seemed to defy the laws of gravity, stepped forward to stand beside his parents. He would act as translator since he can read thoughts apparently. Sam certainly didn't trust the family enough for them to transform back into their human forms, so this would have to do. Bella eyed the male warily before studying the rest of the family, already becoming bored with his arrogant tone. It appeared as though the other four were coupled off. The first pair consisted of a tall blonde gentleman and his short, seemingly opposite, companion. These two seemed to be less hostile than the rest of the children but they still kept their distance. The blonde male stood at attention with his hands clasped behind his back. He appeared to be a soldier of some sort. And the girl… after taking a quick glance at her wardrobe, she could guess the pixie came straight off a runway in Paris with her high fashion clothes… Definitely not a trait commonly found in Forks, Washington.

The second couple seemed to be radiating the most tension aside from bed head boy who was still droning off whatever Sam was telling him mentally. The last son stood like a tree. Without even glancing at his face, seeing his ripped muscles barely contained in his form fitting sweater was enough to intimidate the wolf. He could probably use a tree as a bat in a game of baseball. She finally looked up to his face and caught him smirking slightly at her, almost as if he was the mind reader. Shaking off her anxiousness, her eyes easily slid to the last remaining member of their family… and she gulped.

Time seemed to freeze at that moment. She could still hear the conversation going on around her, but it seemed to mute itself, as if she were suddenly listening under water. All the sounds faded, as well as the people. She didn't see anyone… except for her. The first thing she noticed was that the girl's eyes matched her hair… which the same could be said about the wolf – her chocolate eyes matched her chestnut hair perfectly. But this girl was a most unusual case… for her eyes were yellow, like that of the rest of her family. A bright yellow… like the halo of hair that flowed down around her shoulders in perfect waves. Perfect… like everything else about her.

Bella found that her mouth was suddenly very dry as her heart began to thud away in her chest. Some foreign tingling sensation seemed to flow through her entire being, leaving her numb all over though her body shivered in anticipation… it was as if the earth itself was melting away below her, and only she and this beautiful creature were left in the universe.

_Imprint. Mate. Imprint. Mate._

Before she could analyze what was happening, she suddenly felt a sharp stab of pain through her consciousness. She yelped as Jacob nipped her throat, affectively pulling her from her thoughts. She jerked her head towards him fully prepared to attack when she noticed the look of pure rage on his face, barely covering up the deep sadness she could feel coming from him. She scrunched her brow together and planned to ask him what the hell his deal was when she felt Sam's body nudging both her and Jacob towards the woods. She really felt like demanding answers from the both of them, but feeling the urgency in her Alpha's actions, she didn't stop. She turned and let him and Jacob run on before sparing one last glance to the family. They all seemed to be equally as confused as she… Except for one.

The boy… Edward, they called him… glared at her as he seethed in silence, clenching and unclenching his fists with some hidden agenda. His eyes, which were once golden, now churned with a dangerous obsidian void. For the second time that day she felt the ground was giving beneath her weight, but not in a good way. Without wasting another second, she turned and darted into the forest.

These were troubling times, indeed.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: All the same information as before - this story is based off of Stephanie Meyer's Twilight. I do not own Twilight nor do I claim rights over any of the characters you see here. It was a one shot, but I got enough creative juices flowing for two more chapters. Be sure to let me know what you think so I can keep this story going. Thanks!**

Chapter 2

* * *

><p><strong> BPOV<strong>

The trees began to blur as the three wolves moved across the earth. If they were pushing their speed, their foot falls would shake the ground enough to feel like an earthquake… Any animals in the surrounding forest would flee for their lives. But there was no reason to call attention to themselves. Their bodies moved effortlessly through their surroundings; their paws falling silently to the earth as they weaved through trees and over hills. Their silent movements were considered a special skill… a good trait to have in case they ever needed to track down animals or sneak up on an enemy.

But the silence proved to be suffocating for Bella.

She couldn't wrap her head around what just happened at the Cullen house. She replayed the events over and over again. She didn't even hear what was said. There was the arrogant Edward who she disliked immediately. Though she probably should have disliked them all considering what they are. But Edward especially rubbed her the wrong way, as if his highness couldn't be bothered to speak to the dogs, yet there he was… forced to act as translator. _Well, heaven forbid_. She growled softly thinking about it. It must have been something _he _said to cause their sudden departure.

_Unless…_ She gulped.

Unless they heard what she had been _thinking_.

Wincing inwardly, she pushed herself forward, focusing on the ground in front of her to avoid thinking about… well, _her_. In her wolf form, thinking about… well, _anything_… would be heard by her other pack members. And maybe now wasn't the best time for… well… _that_.

She grunted at the silliness of her own thoughts and pushed forward, following her leaders all the way back to the reservation. Once they were on hallowed ground, they swiftly changed and headed somewhere quiet to talk. Sam and Bella did anyway. Jacob didn't even spare a glance in her direction as he stormed off towards his house. She went to call after him when Sam intervened. Shaking his head softly, he said, "Let him go." They both watched the boy disappear into the trees before Sam gestured his head in another direction. Bella took the hint and turned towards the far off cabin. As they walked in silence, Bella couldn't help but notice the looks she was receiving from some of the tribe - Mothers were shaking their heads at her before ushering their children away. Fathers and their sons stared while some others glared. Some were whispering softly behind their hands while they watched her do the walk of shame. She swallowed hard. _Guess some things don't stay quiet for very long._

"Just ignore them. They'll talk about anything because their own lives are so dull." Sam's voice broke into her thoughts before he moved forward to open the door of his house. She nodded absentmindedly as she walked in, casting a small smile over to Emily as she did. The woman returned Bella's smile with a small one of her own while wringing her hands nervously. The wolf noticed.

"So I guess you've heard, too?" Bella asked while she flopped down in one of their kitchen chairs.

Emily grimaced slightly and immediately dropped her hands to her sides. "I was outside with the boys when they heard it," she glanced over to Sam briefly who was wearing a glum expression, "So it's true?"

Bella groaned and dropped her head on the table, "I didn't know, okay? I think if I had known I would've let something slip before now, you know?"

She didn't look up to see the look of confusion on both of their faces. "Um, I don't think anyone ever expects this to happen, Bella," Sam started, "It just does."

"Ain't that the truth," she muttered before sitting up. "I mean, I've never been attracted to girls before. Look around." She gestured wildly about the cabin, oblivious to the couple's look of concern. "There are _plenty_ of attractive girls in the world, but noooo. I had to think about the _undead_ one." She rolled her eyes but slowly halted her rant when she noticed the look Sam was exchanging with Emily. "What?"

Sighing, Sam moved to pull out a chair for his wife before sitting down beside her. He momentarily covered his face with his hands while he rubbed his forehead with his fingertips, obviously trying to release some stress, before he removed his hands and met Bella's gaze with a stern one of his own. "Bella, I wish this were as simple as finding out you're gay, but it isn't." He glanced at Emily briefly before continuing, "Not that we have many or… _any_ homosexuals in our tribe, but I'm afraid this is a little bit more complicated than that."

Bella felt her mouth go dry as she noted the look of seriousness on his face. "What is it, Sam?"

His face fell for a moment before he clasped his hands on the table and looked back up at her. She could see the note of determination in his eyes before he spoke again. "Bella, have I ever told you about Leah?" Waiting for her to shake her head, he continued, "Well, she wasn't always as pissy as she is now." At this both she and his wife chuckled. He smiled slightly before continuing, "She and I used to date actually." He laughed at what she could only imagine was her look of utter shock, "I know, I know… it was a long time ago. But we did…" the smile slid off his face as he paused for a moment, "We were actually engaged, but… that's when I met Emily." At this point he reached over and took his wife's hand, looking into her eyes as he continued with his story, "I knew from the first moment I saw her we were meant to be together… It was love at first sight."

Bella noticed the far off look they had in their eyes, almost as if they'd teleported back to that moment in history. She let the silence linger for as long as she could before her curiosity won over. "What happened?" she inquired softly.

Snapping out of the past, Sam returned to the present and met Bella's gaze again, "I broke it off with Leah. She was… spiteful to say the least. It's only gotten worse since then." Bella nodded knowingly. "But Bella, what you need to understand is… what happened between me, Emily, and Leah… it was out of my control." The chocolate haired wolf looked a bit skeptical at that, but she nodded anyway like she understood.

Sam saw right through it.

"Bella," he started again, "Wolves… we have this_ thing_ we do… It's called imprinting. I'm sure you've heard the term before, but I'm guessing no one has ever explained to you what that is?" She shook her head and he nodded. "Bella, when we find our soulmates… our other halves… we imprint on them. It happens instantaneously… as soon as we lay eyes on them, we are connected to them… forever. Now they may choose to move on and be with another… but we will always love them and only them." He paused here to make sure she grasped the importance of this, "Do you understand what I'm saying, Bella?"

"Um, yes?" She looked between them, confused. Both pairs of eyes bore into her, pushing for her understanding which she failed to grasp. What did that have to do with…

Realization struck and she closed her eyes as her breath escaped her. "The blonde vampire…" she whispered after a moment.

Sam nodded in confirmation, "You imprinted on her."

Now it was Bella's turn to hide her face in her hands.

"_Ugh, _this can't be happening."

* * *

><p><strong>RPOV<strong>

"What the hell happened out there, Edward?"

The vampire family watched on as their sometimes _overly_ dramatic brother paced back and forth in front of them. Rosalie tried to keep a detached interest, but she couldn't help but wonder like the rest of them _'what the hell happened out there'_ as her sister so eloquently put it. They were all outside when the wolves departed unexpectedly. She had been hoping the meeting would be over with quickly so she wouldn't have to wash the wolf stench out of her hair… but she didn't know it would end so abruptly. The plan was to meet with the new member of their pack – that the family would be forced to go to school with – so that there wouldn't be any surprises when classes started.

It seemed simple enough. They didn't like it, but it's not like they would be becoming friends with this mutt. So, they could play nice… for now.

When the dogs first stepped into the clearing, it took all of her pristine training not to wrinkle her nose in disgust. The scent wafting up from the mutts was horrid – something akin to dirt and possibly their own fecal matter. And they thought _vampires _smelled bad. No matter how bad her family smelled, she bet it couldn't compare to _their_ foul odor which could only be appropriately described as _'shit'_.

She turned her head for a moment, hoping to hide her small gag, when another scent reached her nose. She inhaled slowly a few times before turning and finding the source… her eyes landing on the newcomer for the first time as she cowered behind the two alpha males. _Isabella, was it?_ She raised an eyebrow at the female dog, immediately noticing she was… kind of odd. Her scent, for one, was crisp and clean… sort of a woodsy smell, she smelled like… a mixture of pine and cedar… and fresh rain. All in all, it wasn't too unpleasant… it even seemed to be overshadowing the stench of the other two mutts, for which she was eternally grateful.

Then she took in the dog's form. The girl stood almost as tall as her alpha males, which was a feat in itself considering they are significantly larger than the other members of their pack. But she was slender… leaner than the others. She didn't know if that was because the dog was female or because she was a different breed. Her thick coat was chocolate colored like her eyes, except for the small tuffs of red that mixed in with the rest.

She was different.

As her eyes roved over the scrawny mutt, she faintly caught part of the conversation she had all but ignored from the beginning. Edward announced the girl was called Bella… for short… and suddenly she was broken from her reverie. Rosalie couldn't help but cringe inwardly at the nick name. Isabella was the name of a lady… why shorten it? But then her mind drifted to the image of a playful dog and its owner - how happy the dog was when the owner cooed at it. She felt a small smile tug at the corner of her lips at the thought. Perhaps "Bella" was her pet name… She was a dog after all. Rosalie could just see a human waving a large tree branch at the overgrown fleabag – _"C'mon Bella, get the stick! Get the stick! Good giiiiirl!"_

She had to choke down the laughter that threatened to erupt from her throat when her mind was suddenly pulled from its' musings by a sharp and unexpected yelp. She immediately focused back on the dogs only to see the russet male – _Jacob?_ – release his hold where his teeth had sunken into the flesh of Bella's neck. Hearing the dog's cry made Rosalie suddenly tense up as her brows drew together in her infamous glare.

_What the _hell _is he doing?_

She felt a slow anger building up within her and a sudden urgency to step in between the alpha male and the pup. Before she could make a move though, Sam, the leader, was quickly pushing them away. The vampire family all looked strangely at each other, wondering the same thing as the wolves disappeared just as quickly as they arrived.

What _was_ that?

Returning back to the present, they were close to getting an answer to that question. She looked around the room as everyone watched their brother continue to pace, lost in his own thoughts.

She rolled her eyes. He obviously seemed to be milking this tantrum for all it was worth, so it would probably be another couple of hours before he said anything.

His eyes shot up to hers at that, releasing a tiny growl that was almost inaudible even to _their_ ears. She merely shrugged her shoulders.

"Son, please, sit down," the monarch of their family spoke firmly, but gently. _Ever the peace maker_, she thought when Carlisle spoke again, "Tell us what happened… Everything seemed to be going so well-"

"Or as well as can be expected," Alice muttered quietly.

Their father continued on, throwing a small reprimanding look in the pixie's direction but otherwise ignoring the intrusion, "-when the wolves tensed and you started growling." He glanced over at Esme briefly when she nodded in agreement. "What were they thinking about that got you so riled up?"

Edward started pacing again, though slower this time. They all waited patiently when he finally muttered something under his breath…

Everyone froze in their movement as they tried to decipher what he said… They must have misunderstood.

"What did you say?" Emmett spoke up beside her.

Edward sighed and closed his eyes for a moment before looking up at everyone, "I said I can't hear her thoughts."

Rosalie felt her brow furrow slightly while Alice gasped over in her spot in the armchair. "Bella, you mean?" the smallest member inquired, "You can't hear her at all?"

He shook his head in defeat, but there was still fire behind his eyes as he moved to sit down in the center of the room. "That didn't stop me from hearing what those other two mutts had to say though," he spat out between clenched teeth. He looked over to meet Carlisle's gaze. "That's why they left so abruptly… they were as disgusted as I was." Here he looked down at his hands.

The rest of the family looked around the room, looking for the answers in each other. Rosalie sat back and waited – she knew Edward wouldn't tell them anything unless they baited him, which, of course, she refused to do.

"What were they thinking about?" Esme finally broke the silence.

Edward lifted his head and moved his eyes across everyone before landing his gaze back on their parents. "Apparently the dog, _Bella_, imprinted on one of us."

"_What?_" Alice asked incredulously.

"How is that possible?" Jasper's gentle southern accent rang throughout the room, "We're all already mated."

"Well, except for…" Esme's eyes widened, "Edward, did she imprint on you?"

The room went silent again as all eyes fell on their bronze haired brother. He pressed his lips together and, after a moment, shook his head faintly; his eyes downcast once more.

Alice let out an exasperated breath – she didn't like to be kept waiting – "Then _who?_"

Everyone froze again, some on the edge of their seat, waiting for Edward to respond. His only response, however, was to look up… straight into his golden haired sister's gaze.

Slowly everyone turned to look at Rosalie. She met each of their gazes unwaveringly, though she felt a sudden nervousness settle in the pit of her stomach. She looked back at Edward. "Me," she stated flatly, not believing a word of it.

He nodded almost imperceptibly. Emmett clenched his fists next to her, and she didn't have to be an empath to feel the anger flowing out of him. She reached over and placed a hand on his forearm to calm him.

"Alice," Carlisle called to his youngest daughter, "Have you seen anything about this?"

The smallest member of their family sat in stunned silence before slowly shaking her head. She closed her eyes then, trying to reach out into the future for anything that linked to this. When she returned to the present, she blinked rapidly before focusing back on her family, "I can't see anything pertaining to Rosalie's future." Here she looked over to her sister, "It's blank."

Edward growled softly. "Because you can't see anything having to do with the _dogs_. She must try to seduce Rosalie in the future… and is apparently successful." With this last part, he turns his eyes back to glare at Rosalie accusingly.

Emmett growled next to her, barely restraining himself from jumping out of his seat. "You don't know _anything_, Suckward, so why don't you just can it!"

Rosalie sighed before squeezing her husband's arm reassuringly - the last thing they needed was an out of control Emmett. She fixated her eyes on the bronze haired boy, "Are you insane? You can think whatever you want to about the wolves, dear brother, but do not throw me into this. The bitch imprinted on _me_… I did not imprint on _her_. And, if you haven't forgotten, I already have a mate." She looped her arm through Emmett's for emphasis. "And I do not plan on leaving him for some scrawny dog."

Her parents looked worried. She could tell they were having some private conversation flowing in between them – one she was sure Edward was eavesdropping on – and it made her angry. If they thought for one moment she would stray from her loyalties, they had another thing coming.

"We just want you to be sure, dear," Esme spoke softly, noticing the rising tension coming from her daughter, "If you're sure, then we're happy for you."

"Yes," Carlisle agreed, "But, for now, since there seems to be no reason to speak to Bella, perhaps it would be best to just steer clear of her while you're at school." He looked around at his children making sure they all gave a nod of ascent, though he had to wait a while for Edward and Emmett. "Very good."

"Well, now that that's over," Rosalie muttered under her breath before standing, pulling her mate with her, "Let's get out of here." Emmett was silent but nodded as she led the way up to their bedroom.

* * *

><p><strong>BPOV<strong>

Bella paced slowly across the room while the married couple watched on in silence. The young wolf, flustered with the new information, couldn't help but ask herself _"how did this happen?"_ and _"why me?"_ over and over again. Sam waited patiently. He had already tried to intervene a couple times, but the pup needed to get this out of her system.

After a few more minutes of pacing, she finally rounded on them, "What am I supposed to do?"

Sam, sending her a sympathetic look, gently rose from his chair and stepped forward, "Nothing for now, Bella. The union of a vampire and a werewolf… well, it's unheard of." His spoke gently since the girl appeared to be getting more and more hysterical by the second, "It's going to be okay, though." She scoffed at this and turned to resume pacing when he placed a firm hand on her shoulder, making her stop and face him. "I'll meet with the council as soon as I can… come by here after school tomorrow and we'll discuss it, okay? But for now, go home… sleep. Tomorrow is going to be a long day and you'll need all the rest you can get."

Bella swallowed gently but nodded her head at his request. She knew she was in desperate need of sleep after the day she had. She left her Alpha's house then and returned home in minutes, looking for some much needed comfort in her old sheets and cozy pillows. She had no trouble finding sleep that night, thankfully. But once her body relaxed and her breathing evened out, she found that her worries were ever present… as even her unconscious mind wandered back to a pair of bright, golden eyes.

* * *

><p><strong>RPOV<strong>

Emmett still seemed to be in a horrible mood once they returned to the solitude of their bedroom. She did her best to ignore it as she sat by her vanity mirror, picking up her brush to gently guide it through her hair. The nights were long for them since they didn't need sleep. She would often spend her time browsing magazines or working on their many cars if she was bored. Now, however, she found solace in her meticulous hair brushing, trying to avoid the upcoming conversation.

Her bear of a mate sat silently on their bed, watching her every move before the silence became too much.

"What if he's right?"

The blonde scoffed before slamming the brush down on her vanity table. _Why did I see this coming?_

Twisting in her seat, she turned her glare on the man sitting in front of her. "Emmett… we are married… not only that, but we have _been_ married for decades… more so than the average human. And we have _consummated _that union God knows how many times… Now please, tell me, _when_ have I ever shown interest in another woman?"

Her husband ducked his head down shamefully. "I know… you're right, I'm sorry."

Rolling her eyes, she returned to studying herself in the vanity mirror. The image was marred now – the signs of her anger and frustration clearly shown on her face. She concentrated on her brow, forcing herself to relax until the small crease evened out again. Her eyes moved to her mouth next, watching as her scowl slowly receded. Once that was finished, she gazed over the rest of her features, making sure everything was as it should be. When she finished her inspection, she raised her chin defiantly, staring down her reflection as she continued to brush her hair. There was only one word to describe her.

_Perfection._

"But I hope you know," the voice filtered softly into her consciousness, gently breaking her concentration as she registered the words from her husband, "if you ever were… to find someone else," when he trailed off here, she broke her staring competition with the mirror and slid her eyes over to the reflection of her mate, "Well, I just want you to be happy." He met her gaze in the mirror then, showing her all the affection and loyalty he held for her. She felt her composure crack slightly.

Ducking down her head, she studied her nails while she formulated her response. She knew he meant well, she knew he thought the world of her. She knew he had only been asking a sensible question. But somewhere in the deep recesses of her mind, she couldn't bring herself to apologize.

"I know," the words were spoken so softly she wasn't sure if he would be able to hear. It was only when he placed his hand on her shoulder that she knew.

Together they moved over to the bed and lied down, holding each other in a gentle embrace. They spent many moments like this, enjoying each other's company. But tonight, when her husband gently breathed in the scent of her hair… when he squeezed her to his chest just a little more tightly… she wondered if this would be the last gentle moment between them.


End file.
